I. Field of Use
The present invention relates to the field of theft prevention devices. More specifically, the present invention relates to a method and apparatus for securing an object, such as a surfboard, to a structure such as a motor vehicle.
II. Description of the Related Art
The sport of surfing has gained in popularity in the United States and abroad over the past several years. It is estimated that there are currently 3.5 million people who enjoy surfing in the United States alone. In most cases, surfboards are transported to the ocean on top of a car via roof racks or in the bed of a pickup truck. The typical method of securing surfboards to car top roof racks is by a canvas or rubber straps.
One of the disadvantages of transporting surfboards via motor vehicle is that few vehicles are large enough to transport surfboards inside. Consequently, most people transport surfboards external to their vehicles. There exists removable or permanent roof-top racks for automobiles whereby one or more surfboards can be secured for transport. Individuals owning pickup trucks can simply place their surfboard(s) in the bed of the pickup truck.
One disadvantage of transporting large objects such as surfboards external to a vehicle is that they are highly visible and therefore attract thieves when an owner leaves the surfboard unattended. These large objects are difficult to secure against theft due to their large size and unibody construction. Most roof racks today do not have a way to lock the surfboard securely to the vehicle. In most cases, elastic straps are all that is used to secure the surfboard to the vehicle. These are quickly and easily removed by thieves.
Most available surfboard locking mechanisms use a steel cable that is attached to a “leash plug” in the surfboard. The other end of the cable is then secured to a structure on the vehicle using a padlock or the like. These systems are generally easy for thieves to defeat, because the steel cable can be cut quickly with bolt cutters, or the leash plug can be destroyed.
A locking mechanism that does not rely on steel cables is described in a patent issued to Bolich (U.S. Pat. No. 5,582,044). In this patent, a surfboard is secured to the top of two roof racks using four independent locking mechanisms located at four edges of the surfboard. However, this device requires four elaborate locking mechanisms, which may be expensive to build and to purchase. Another drawback of this mechanism is that the surfboard may be easily removed if only one of the four locking mechanisms is defeated. Yet another drawback is that it is time consuming to lock and unlock the surfboard using four separate locking mechanisms.
Another locking mechanism that does not rely on steel cables is described a PCT publication entitled “Surfboard Security Locking System” to Spry (WO01/60660). In this publication, a locking device is described that secures a surfboard to a car roof rack using an adjustable, U-shaped locking mechanism. Half of the locking mechanism is fixedly secured to a vehicle roof rack, while the other half is removable. A major drawback of this invention is that half of the U-shaped locking mechanism remains secured to the vehicle, even when a surfboard is not being transported. This results in added wind resistance to the vehicle, and also degrades the look and styling of the vehicle.
What is needed is a surfboard locking mechanism that is easy to remove and install, while providing a high degree of security.